The Looming Physician Shortage & Locum Tenens

February 14th, 2011 1 Min read The Looming Physician Shortage & Locum Tenens Blog
Recruiting companies have been gearing up for the highly publicized physician shortage for years. Most healthcare recruiting companies are putting more emphasis on physicians and physician extenders based on this increase in demand. In addition to the much needed increase in the number of physicians in training programs, there will be a need to deploy those physicians more broadly including an increase focus in rural areas where shortage of physicians is already a concern. Locum tenens companies provide a valuable service in addressing the physician shortage. Locum tenens companies help to distribute physician resources by deploying suburban physicians to more rural communities and to communities and patients who may need them the most. Locum tenens physicians may be full-time traveling physicians or a part-time traveler who currently resides in one community, but through introduction by a locum tenens agency is able to provide care in another community whose needs might be greater. In addition to this re-deployment, locum tenens staffing companies can give retiring physicians work to match their skill set and new lifestyle preferences as they near retirement age. Locum tenens is becoming and will continue to be a lifestyle choice by which physicians can practice when and how they choose - ultimately keeping them in the workforce longer. For more information on the looming physician shortage, click here to read what the Association of American Medical Colleges is projecting. What are your thoughts?

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